Virtue reborn

I heard Tom Wright this afternoon speaking at Chelmsford Cathedral about his recent book Virtue Reborn.
Debates in society and the Church, he suggested, often oscillate between a rule book mentality and the cult of spontaneity. Sometimes utilitarianism - the greatest happiness for the greatest number - is invoked as a way out of this oscillation but, Wright argued, the development of character (virtue) is actually what makes sense of both.

Our goal as Christians is the new heaven and earth and we can anticipate in the present what we will become in the new heaven and earth. We practice in the here and now living as we shall live in the future and the more that we practice such living the more it becomes second nature and instinctual. Rules are needed initially because living in this way does not come naturally but only so that this way of living becomes spontaneous. Rules are like the crash barriers on a motorway, only needed when we have an accident.

We are designed to be image bearers, a royal priesthood; angled mirrors reflecting God out into the world and reflecting the world back to God (Revelation 4 and 5). We are people through whom God's blessings come out into the world as we practice the virtues which come straight from the heart of the Servant King. This comes about by the renewing of our minds. We have to work out and practice what is good and pleasing and acceptable to God.

The philosopher Simon Blackburn has written that the early Christians introduced four new virtues into ancient virtue ethics: humility; patience; chastity; and charity. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 writes that love is not our duty but our destiny. We practice love here and now in order that it becomes second nature in God's kingdom.

Virtuous circles go upwards and outwards and, for Christians, involve: scripture (living in the story); stories (biographies of the virtuous); examples (e.g. Maximilian Kolbe); community (being shaped by shared sacraments).

While this brief summary doesn't do justice to Wright's argument, I felt his argument provided a framework for perceptions I've preached on previously. These include the idea that the summary of the Law is also the goal of the Law. I've illustrated this idea previously in terms of parents teaching children to cross the road. The goal of such teaching is that we can judge for ourselves when to cross the road safely wherever we are. However, beginning such teaching involves strict rules preventing the child from crossing the road by itself until the lessons have been internalised and can be applied safely without the parent's presence. In a similar way, the detailed rules of the Mosaic Law were intended to inculcate love for God, others and ourselves.

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Albert Ayler - Music Is The Healing Force Of The Universe.